Swiss Chard and Ricotta Cheese Quiche

My sister recently gave birth to her second little boy named Kai. He was three weeks early and 7lbs 1 oz. Because she was early she did not have all the time she thought she would to prepare some meals in advance. In addition she receives weekly delivery of fresh seasonal organic fruits and vegetables from a local farmers market. She had not had a chance to cancel the order and received two weeks worth of gorgeous vegetables. I was the lucky recipient of those veggies considering she had not time and considering the c-section the ability to cook.

I thought I would use some of her vegetables to make a few meals for the family. With the broccoli I made two large batches of soup. With the swiss chard, fresh parsley, onion and chives I made this delicious quiche. The family enjoys a lot of vegetarian meals so I thought this would make a perfect dinner one evening for them.

Swiss Chard & Ricotta Cheese Quiche

1 unbaked pie shell (9")

1 small onion, minced

1/8 tsp cracked black pepper

3/4 cup 1% milk

4 large eggs

20 oz of swiss chard chopped (or use spinach, kale)

1 tsp oil

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 lb ricotta cheese, light

less than 1/3 cup parmesan cheese (optional)

chopped up parsley and chives (optional because I had them)

Preheat the oven to 425F.

Microwave the swiss chard for about 3o seconds. Then chop it up into the size desired for the quiche.

Add oil to pan and sautee onion and chard with nutmeg, pepper. Set aside to cool.

In a large bowl combine the cheeses. Add the cooled sauteed mixture. Add the milk and eggs. Mix well.

Pour into the pie pastry and place on a cookie sheet to catch any over spill. Bake for 15 min.

Then reduce the oven to 325F and bake for an additional 50 mins until it is set.

Mexican Omelette

The thought of mexican and eggs reminds me of my week in the Mayan Riveria. It was my first vacation at a resort. To me I could not see myself sitting on a beach for 7 days doing nothing but eating, drinking, tanning, and eating and drinking some more. What is a vacation without mountains to climb? But this was my honeymoon and for the first time in my 28 years on earth, I felt like I could use some real R&R, and thought this would be the place to do just that.

No regrets! This was a much needed relaxing vacation, which offered culture in the small nearby town of Playa Del Carmen, snorkling with sea turtles, beautiful views of the ocean and plenty of food to try.

The food was pretty good. Each morning I could not wait to wake up to fresh tropical fruits, topped with granola and freshly grated coconut; scrambled eggs; the best ever refried beans; cinammon french toast and mimosas. No I did not eat all of that each morning, but I certainly wanted to. However, I had to pace myself and keep room for the noon hour Mojitos.

Lately with the cold I had been dreaming of once again sitting on the beach in Mexico. These thoughts inspired me to cook with some simple mexican flavors. Not having much time, I thought I'd whip up a simple omelette with some simple mexican ingredients. This is a quick & easy mid week meal that allowed me to get home from work eat and take off to plans.

On another note the Bread Baking Day Round Up #8 has been posted on Wild Yeast site. Mine is one of 49 great entries.

2 large eggs

1T water

freshly ground pepper

2-3 white button mushrooms, quartered

1 T red onion, finely chopped

2" zuchinni, sliced

1/4 tomato, diced

1/8 avocado, diced

1/4 cup old cheddar or monterey jack cheese, shredded

2 T hot salsa

Whisk together the eggs, water and pepper.

Using an 8-inch nonstick (spray with non stick spray or use 1 T butter) skillet preheat to medium-high heat. Add onions, mushrooms and zuchinni; sauté for about 5 minutes. Transfer mixture to medium bowl.

Respray the same skillet; heat over medium-high heat. Add egg mixture and cook until eggs are just set in center, tilting skillet and lifting edges of omelet with spatula to let uncooked portion flow underneath, about 4-5 minutes.

Pour the cooked vegetable mix over half of the omelette. Add diced tomatoes and avocado. Sprinkle cheese over veggie mix.

Using spatula, fold uncovered half of omelet over cheese and cook a few more mins until cheese is slightly melted.

Plate the omelette and serve with a few T of hot salsa and a side of refried beans.

Vegetable Frittata

Eggs are a delicious source of low fat, low calorie protein, containing about 70 cal per large egg. They are a good source of vitamin B12 and folate contianing about 30% and 15% respectively of a persons RDI (recommended daily intake). As they contain less than 1.5g of saturated fat (bad fat) per egg with 4g of monounsaturated (good fat) they are not the cholesterol creepers once thought to be.

Althought typically thought of as a breakfast or brunch, I often enjoy eggs as a dinner (scrambled, omelete, quiche or frittata).

This colorful vegetable frittata is a simple, quick and healthy meal to make. Frittata's are so versatile that you can add any vegetable and any type of cheese you desire.

9 organic eggs
1 tsp salt
dash of ground black pepper
1 tsp dried thyme
2 T 1% milk
1 T parmesan cheese
1/4 cup shredded cheese (old cheddar, gruyere, swiss, goat, brie are some options)
1 T olive oil
1 clove garlic
1 cup baby spinach
1 tomato, diced
1/2 small zuchinni, sliced
1/4 red onion, roughly chopped
3/4 cup white mushrooms, quartered

In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs, salt, pepper, thyme, milk parmesan, shredded cheese and set aside.

In a 10 inch non stick saute pan (with lid), heat the olive oil over med heat and cook onions and garlic for 1 mins. Then add all the vegetables, except the tomatoes. Cook for 5 min and then add the tomatoes for about 1 mins. Stirring.

Pour the egg mixture over the sauteed vegetables and stir the mixture around until all the vegetables are covered. Reduce the heat to low, cover and let cook for about 10 minutes. After 10 minutes the eggs are likely not set yet and will need to place in oven.

Transfer the pan to a preheated 400F oven with cover on for about 6 mins. Once egg is set, remove the lid sprinkle with cheese (shredded) and broil with lid off for 3 minutes until brown on top.

Remove from oven and let cool slightly and serve in wedges. Goes well with a side of baby spinach salad.

Serves 6-8